Sweet & Sour Tears – RAY CHARLES****

Cry/Guess I’ll Hang My Tears Out To Dry/A Tear Fell/No One To Cry To/You’ve Got Me Crying Again/After My Laughter Came Tears/Teardrops From My Eyes/Don’t Cry Baby/Cry Me A River/Baby Don’t You Cry/Willow Weep For Me/I Cried For You

Musical genius Ray Charles concept album Sweet & Sour Tears, featured songs with titles or lyrics referring to crying. It was difficult to pigeonhole him as his musical styled ranged across soul, jazz, country and pop. (US:9)

"Wrapped in lush string arrangements and the swooning background vocals of the Gene Lowell Singers, 1964's Sweet & Sour Tears is a concept album in which Ray interprets material dealing with loss and heartbreak."

"His voice often cracks with emotion as his piano forlornly pushes on, particularly in the loping country waltz A Tear Fell and You've Got Me Crying Again, providing the soundtrack for heartbreak the world over."

"Its not exactly a thematic unity. If anything Charles likes to mix up his genres, moving from jazz to country and then to soul and pop. Overall the slow and more sentimental songs do not fare as well as the more upbeat numbers."

"The incredible thing about Sweet & Sour Tears is that, after having heard it, you could swear its a compilation. But its not. Its just one of the average recordings of a man who turned into gold whatever song he played, a man whose musical production during the fifties and the sixties is a unique and admirable legacy."

"An album from 1964 when Ray was at the peak of his vocal and exploratory powers. Jazz, blues, middle-pop, a little rock-and-roll, some great country (If A Tear Fell doesn't have you waltzing across the floor, you're dead) all rolled-in together in one superb LP. A great start to the most essential of collections."

"Professional album from 1964. A very good selection of tearful songs by one of the greatest singers and musicians. Some of the songs are so lovely you will want to hear them over and over again."

"One is almost tempted to think that Charles was toying with audience expectations by mixing unabashedly sentimental slow tunes with the far more bluesy, satisfying, and upbeat numbers."